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The Net Giants' Privacy Timebomb

businessweek.com — Search data stored by the likes of Google & AOL is a privacy timebomb. It's time for these Net giants to hit the delete key. Most companies don't routinely and purposefully delete their data. It costs more to purge than to store, so businesses take the path of least resistance. Historically, this has caused orphaned account information to linger.

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p9s50W5k4GUD2c6 1 year 324 days ago, made popular 1 year 323 days ago

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EmileVictor, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10I agree completely. Because Google has my email conversations for the last year and a half, calendar agenda, chats, web site statistics (adsense and analytics), financial information (adsense), home address, search history, cached computer files and phone number, I have a reason to be afraid what they'll do with it.
- vhold, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6So, you want google to hit the delete key on all the data you gave to them? (seeing as how that is what this story is about)
- joeshlub, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Perhaps if your fearful you might not want to put all of your eggs into one networked basket?
  
  Joking aside though, I'm in a less significant but simmilar situation. I don't think the real fear is what THEY'LL do with it so much as what someone else would do with it if it were to leak. Google is smarter than most with this, I would imagine, but with everything that goes on lately, your right to be concerned.
- zoombusa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7I have no issues with them collecting data. But what would be nice is if they could delete the IPs associated with the data. I think all of these companies should delete anything that can identify a person. It's ok if they want to profile (by location, age, sex, etc etc) to improve their services, but they should not hold anything that can identify the person.
  
  I guess we all need to push for anonymous proxy servers. But then again I trust google over some anonymous proxy service.
- treelovinhippie, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9Privacy these days DOES NOT EXIST.
  
  If someone wanted to, they could find out all they need to steal your money, possessions and identity... without the need to look on Google servers.
  
  I would actually trust Google more with my data more than all the other little sites you unknowingly peddle information out to (such as Digg... though I trust Digg).
  
  Get over it, we're in an information age. The more data that companies gather about us, the easier they can make our lives.
- EmileVictor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I don't have any problem with them using information in ways that will be useful to me. I have no interest in them keeping information such as searches, because I have no interest in that, and I'd probably prefer stuff like that to be deleted.
- marc26uk, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1@ treelovinhippie: I agree 90%, we live in an age of ever decreasing privacy, we have a bit left, but not much.
  
  Just wait 20-50 years and it will be more like 99%. You will step out of your house and there will be CCTV or equivalent. Again, the images captured will probably be stored indefinitely. not a problem at the moment, but when facial/body language recognition really kicks in, the privacy of people out and about in public will fall through the floor.
  
  I envision the scenario where someone could enter your details, and see a list of where you were at any given time. Frightening, but sadly 99% "inevitable".
zoombusa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Also don't forget about your local ISPs. They collect data too. Keep in mind every communication transaction is stored. And when you use a search engine you search text is right in the url.

The trail is everywhere.

I can't wait till IPv6 with true end to end encryption. But we know the feds will have none of that.
- zoombusa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I was referring to ipv6 vs ipv4 using nat with vpn passthru allowed. also it is only encrypted to the vpn server. if you are on the nat side how can you run a vpn server so when people connect to you they can encrypt traffic without port forwarding?
- zoombusa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1PC===NAT Router---------Internet----------NAT Router=====PC
  
  @4st3r1x tell me how you would encrypt traffic end to end (PC - PC) with ipv4 in this drawing using nat and no port forwarding?
  
  If you have unique ipv6 addrs (no NAT) you can because you have a unique fully reachable addr.
jguy584, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5"Schmidt replied that they didn't need to because security protections would make it difficult, if not impossible, to steal customer data."

Dont get me wrong, i love and trust google as much as the next digger, but hackers have never failed to impress me....
- Nowheredan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Hell, he almost sounds like he's challenging them to try.
- zoombusa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Oh there is no need to challenge. They try all the time. But they won't need to hack in AOL already proved that!
zybch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The big guys like Google and AOL won't willingly delete their old data. It provides far too much useful info about people's surfing and searching habits that one day may possibly be turned into money for them.
ragipy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3How the hell does it cost more to purge than store? Maybe programs to select relevant info then delete the rest? But that would still be partially storing not erasing.
- meg33k, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1In the context of enterprise storgage: If you purge you must first review. Who would review the data to be purged? Normally the supervisor of the person that the data belonged to... How many supervisors are that diligent? Or have the time allowed to do that? They normally wave at IT and mumble something like; "Can you take care of that for me?" or "Just burn it to Disc and store it." (an even more disturbing method if done without guidelines).
  
  All of that costs more than just buying disk space...
apjone, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Not sure if any of you are aware but compannies by law in the EU have to keep 6-24 months of Internet traffic data. please see
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1903618,00.asp

Don't know what the law in the rest of the world is
chadell, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2stop blaming Google et al, we all willingly handover info. Besides, it's useful research material. This is like blaming your trusted friend for keeping all your sordid secrets. Unless you live in solitary, it is essential to divulge info to a trusted few. Wether they betray that trust is an open question.
eelozano, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1This data is the business a lot of these companies work in. Asking google to purge there data is pretty rediculous!

Some people do not want there email messages >1yr (or 2, 3, etc) deleted. The whole point is to be able to pull up useful data 2, 3, or even 4 years down the line.
Cablito, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Someone who emails or does anything online that might compromise their integrity, be that finantial, social, criminal or emotional is just playing daredevil. One could just as well jump in the shark tank dressed up as fish.
SecondGuesser, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@ treelovinhippie et al:

Sorry to hijack a thread, but does your acceptance of a "loss of privacy" extend to such actions as NSA surveillance? If I'm to "get over it" as you advise, must I allow the government or any curious private sector entity to access to other areas of my life? And if privacy is lost, does this mean that I can no longer sue when someone breaches a confidentiality agreement?

You guys should really think before you speak.
tech42er, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1How about the second comment? Let's start our own search engine to show that deleting info is a good business strategy because it's a "feature" that ppl care about! Who's with me?
visio, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0You use their search you agree to their terms. They use the data only for providing you with more relevant search engine results.

But listen to this. The government asked the big search engines for their data. Cowardly Yahoo and MSN GAVE THEM OUR DATA! Google said no. Who are you following? Google for me. They provide relevant and they didn't flinch like cowardly msn and yahoo.

I am a Search Engine Marketing Specialist and can guarantee you the data Google collects will never be used wrongly. The data is only seen by robots who use it to provide relativity for your searches.

If you want to worry about privacy there are bigger worries. But if you think google is a problem DON"T USE THEM. No one follows you around making you use Google. Stop being a moron. Read what is really going on here: google-watch-watch.org

It is alot like the Paypal haters. They hate them because they are big and offer what people want so they find little faults to stretch apart. And look at alot of these Google haters sites. THEY USE ADSENSE of all things. Is that a oximoron? Maybe its just a moron running the site.

And lastly before I end I want you to know that the Verizon and other moronic companies who wanted to control the internet like TV so that the big companies like Verizon would ALWAYS end up first on the search engines. Google said no and fought it even though Google would have got a VERY LARGE cut of the profits by promoting only the big companies but Google doesn't believe in it. Google believes in little companies having a chance.

You guys know very little about Google if you think there is a privacy issue. Take it from a expert who works all day long decyphering search algos, policies and marketing strategies. I have seen everything.
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The Net Giants' Privacy Timebomb

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